Friday, April 8, 2016

COMPTROLLER STRINGER: KEY BUILDING AND MAINTENANCE CONDITIONS AT NYCHA CONTINUE TO WORSEN



Musty and moldy smells are a daily hazard in 12,600 NYCHA households 
Analysis of 2014 Housing Vacancy Survey data shows peeling paint, mice, heating breakdowns at NYCHA vastly outpace all other types of housing



  Physical conditions in New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) buildings and apartments — including cracked walls, holes in floors, and peeling paint — have continued to worsen over the past several years, according to a new housing brief analyzing 2014 Housing Vacancy Survey (HVS) data released today by New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer.
“Housing conditions at NYCHA remain a tenant’s nightmare, with moldy units, holes in floors, and broken walls,” Comptroller Stringer said. “These apartments are our most valuable affordable housing resource, which is why it’s so vital for NYCHA to bring these units into a state of good repair. Fixing these troubling conditions and giving every NYCHA resident a safe place to live must be a priority for the City.”
The Comptroller’s analysis examined the most recently published data from the Housing Vacancy Survey, a comprehensive set of point-in-time measurements conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Structural condition data is based on assessments by Census field representatives while maintenance and apartment deficiencies are informed by survey responses of City residents.
The 2014 survey data found that the structural condition of NYCHA buildings had declined in 9 of 18 measures from 2011 and improved in other categories. However, the rate of observed deficiencies in four of the seven most important apartment maintenance categories grew during this same time period.
How-NYCHA-Lives
Key findings include:
  • In 2014, reports of musty and moldy smells were included in the HVS for the first time. The analysis found that 7.1% of NYCHA households, more than 12,600 units, reported musty/moldy smells on a daily basis inside their apartments and 13.3% reported that condition a few times in a year. That daily rate is more than double the rate of rent stabilized tenants (3.5%) and substantially higher than market-rate tenants (1.2%) and owner-occupied housing (0.3%).
  • Bulging or sloping wall conditions, a sign of significant structural neglect, more than tripled from 365 in 2008 to 1,164 in 2014. Observations of boarded up windows steadily increased during that same time period, rising from 1,372 in 2008 to 2,003 in 2014. There were 1,983 slanted or shifted doorsills or door frame observations in 2014, the highest-recorded level since 2002.
  • Half of the measures of structural conditions deteriorated in NYCHA buildings from 2011 to 2014. These included a 371.8% increase in major cracks in outside walls, a 72.6% increase in holes or missing floors and a 38.1% increase in sagging or sloping floors.
  • For the first time in at least 12 years, rates of observed instances of heating equipment breakdowns, additional heating required, presence of mice or rats, cracks and holes in interior walls and ceilings, floor holes, broken plaster, and peeling paint and water leakage were all higher at NYCHA than in rent-stabilized, market rate rental and owner-occupied housing units.
  • Two other notable maintenance deficiency rates in the City’s public housing stock that worsened from 2011 to 2014 include toilet breakdowns (6.2% increase) and kitchen facilities not working (7.0% increase).
  • Areas where conditions improved from 2011 to 2014 included rotten or loose window frames (48.1% decrease), broken or missing windows (44% decrease), elevators not accessible for wheelchairs (38.1% decrease), dilapidated buildings (35% decrease) and missing siding or outside walls (23.3% decrease).
In September 2014, Comptroller Stringer called for the projected surpluses from the Battery Park City Authority to be directed specifically toward critically needed repairs at NYCHA properties, which would be the first new funding stream to NYCHA in a generation.  In order to enact this policy, the Governor, New York City Mayor and Comptroller must all support the redirection of funds.  In January 2016, the Governor backed the plan.
“These findings are deeply troubling and we must take immediate steps to ensure that housing conditions at NYCHA improve across the board. I again urge the Administration to give their support to direct surplus Battery Park City Authority funds to create the first new funding stream in a generation for NYCHA . If we want every New Yorker to have a fair and fighting chance to make it in this city, we have an obligation to act without delay,” Stringer said.


owner_occupied_chart
Source: NYC Comptroller’s Office from New York City Housing and Vacancy Survey Microdata
To read the full report, click here.

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Join BronxWorks in a 5K Multi-Charity Event - All Non-Profits Will Raise New Revenue





Join BronxWorks in a 5K Multi-Charity Event
All Non-Profits Will Raise New Revenue
 
 
LUNCH INFORMATION SESSION
When: Tuesday, April 12, 2016 at 12:30 p.m.
Where: BronxWorks Carolyn McLaughlin Community Center
1130 Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY 10456
 
 
The Generosity Series of multi-charity 5K Run/Walks is an integrated peer to peer fundraising platform that's making fundraising better, easier and more predictable. Our Charity Partners raise funds at a rate of five times higher than the industry average. Our company handles all event logistics and your non-profit receives customized bibs, T-shirts and medals for your participants with your logo. Learn how your non-profit can raise money by joining the Bronx 5K run/walk event to be held Sunday, June 26, 2016 in Van Cortlandt Park.
 
Here's a 2-minute video clip from one of our events:www.youtube.com/watch?t=2&v=A9HYmv5FTgA
 
The Generosity Series website: www.generosityseries.com
 
Please contact Julie at julie@generosityseries.com or 718-506-9777 x507

Phil Cardone
 Grants & Events Director
 Bronx Chamber of Commerce
"The Network For Business Success"
1200 Waters Place, Suite 106
Bronx, NY 10461

Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj's Sanitation Forum- April 21, 2016



Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj's
Legal Series Forum  
Join us for our first Legal Forum on

 NYC Sanitation Guidelines 

Thursday, April 21, 2015
6 pm to 8 pm

Bronx House
990 Pelham Parkway South
Bronx, N.Y. 10461

For more information, please contact the office of 
Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj

Greenway Day - Next Sunday, April 17th



Sunday, April 17, 2016
Riverdale Station Park
254th Street and the River
1-3pm
Event
will feature music, food, children's activities and more right alongside the beautiful Hudson River!

Community Members are urged to attend the upcoming 
Community Board 8 Greenway Meeting
April 13, 7:30pm
Riverdale Y 


Ride Safe! Fun, Food and Motorcycle Safety Day Sponsored by Empire Harley Davidson and the Jacobi Trauma Service



Ride Safe!
Fun, Food and Motorcycle Safety Day
Sponsored by Empire Harley Davidson and the Jacobi Trauma Service

Saturday, April 30th v 12 Noon - 4 PM
Empire Harley Davidson
8 Industrial Lane, New Rochelle, NY 10805

·         Jacobi Trauma Service Injury Prevention Program and Emergency Medicine
·         Empire State Motorcycle Safety Education Program
·         Biker Down! - Tips For Riders On The Scene
·         Safe Riding Techniques and Demonstration by the New Rochelle Police Department Motorcycle Unit
·         Safety Gear Demo
·         BBQ and Music
·         Raffles and Giveaways
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Carmen De La Rosa Launches Campaign for 72nd Assembly Seat of Assemblyman Linares



  Chief of Staff to Council Member Rodriguez Ready to Fight for Equal Pay for women, Quality Education, Increased Access to Healthcare and to Preserve Affordable Housing

    Carmen De La Rosa, Chief of Staff to NYC Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez, announced her candidacy for the 72nd Assembly District on Thursday, saying she would be a strong voice in Albany, especially in a community lacking in female elected leadership. Carmen De La Rosa, a district leader for the 72nd AD and experienced staffer who rose through the offices of Assembly Member Daniel O'Donnell and Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez, announced that she is ready to fight for the community where she was raised and is now raising her young daughter, bringing a fresh, progressive voice to the table uptown.
"This candidacy is about bringing a new, progressive voice to Albany, strengthening the representation of women in our uptown community and throughout our state," said Carmen De La Rosa, Assembly Candidate for the 72nd Assembly District. "Our communities in Washington Heights, Inwood and Marble Hill face challenges when it comes to access to reproductive healthcare, quality schools and affordable housing, but I am ready to take these challenges head on and fight for the neighborhoods I have called home my entire life."
Carmen De La Rosa was raised in Inwood, attending elementary and middle school at St. Jude's, before going to High School at Mother Cabrini on Fort Washington Avenue. She was proudly the first person in her family to attend college, graduating from Fordham University with a degree in Political Science.
She entered government as a Community Liaison to Assembly Member Daniel O'Donnell, working with the Upper West Side community on issues of improved senior care, fighting co-locations in local schools and affordable housing preservation, while learning the functions of a state Assembly office. She then returned to work for her community at the office of Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez, serving as his legislative, policy & budget director, focusing on college affordability and the disparities in enrollment at higher education institutions for students of color.
In 2014, Carmen was appointed Chief of Staff to Council Member Rodriguez, playing an instrumental role in the passage of nearly a dozen bills related to Mayor Bill de Blasio's Vision Zero initiative, as well as supporting countless neighborhood institutions from senior centers to after school programs to social service providers. It was in this role that Carmen gained a firm understanding of the true needs of the uptown community and how to address them, through legislative action, smart, progressive budgeting and fierce advocacy.
Carmen now stands prepared to take on Albany to fight for Equal Pay for women, more resources for our grossly underfunded schools and to preserve the affordable housing so treasured in northern Manhattan.
"It is appalling that in 2016, women are paid so much less for equal work," said Carmen De La Rosa. "I am ready to take this fight to the finish line for the hard working women of Washington Heights. I also recognize the plight that so many working families uptown face when our schools are underfunded and our affordable housing stock faces pressure from rising rents and greedy slumlords. I have worked on these issues for years and now I am prepared to lead the way."
"Carmen has long held the distinct ability to bring communities together around important issues," said Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez. "I am proud to support her candidacy for this important seat and I know she will be a strong, progressive voice for our diverse uptown community. Her experience and wherewithal on issues from public safety to improving education and protecting affordable housing make her hands down the best candidate for this seat. In a neighborhood yearning for young leadership, she will bring a welcome voice to the table and a fresh perspective on ways to advance our community."
"As someone who has worked closely with Carmen, advocating on behalf of residents in Northern Manhattan, I am proud to support her candidacy for the 72nd Assembly District," said Council Member Mark Levine. "Carmen De La Rosa has been a tremendous asset to the Uptown community and I know she will do an excellent job representing them in the assembly. Her knowledge and advocacy on early childhood education, equal pay and access to reproductive health, will be crucial in making strides in these areas. Our state legislature and our community would each be bolstered by Carmen's resounding voice."


Presidential Politics - Clinton Comes to Bronx Day After Cruz Visit


      Yesterday Republican Presidential candidate Ted Cruz came to a Bronx Restaurant to meet with State Senator  Ruben Diaz Sr. Senator Diaz has endorsed Republicans in the past including Rob Astorino in the last New York State Governors race. However his son Bronx Borough President a devout Democrat has endorsed Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton for President. It should also be noted that Team Diaz member Assemblyman Luis Sepulveda has endorsed Democratic Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.  So what is going on here - Father supporting another Republican candidate this time for President, Son the devout Democrat supporting the Establishment Democratic candidate for President, and Insurgent member of Team Diaz supporting the non Establishment Democratic candidate for President? Photo below is from Daniel Johnson's Facebook page of Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton outside Yankee Stadium this morning.



Daniel Johnson's photo.
Add caption

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

TONIGHT: NBDC with NYC Small Business Services



North Bronx Democratic Club invites you to a Members Meeting
Join us for a Members Meeting
with NYC Small Business Services

Wednesday, April 6, 2016
6:30 pm to 8:30 pm

Tracey Towers
Community Center
40 West Mosholu Parkway South
Bronx, NY